Thom Yorke: Media Mogul?

The Guardian in England recently released its list of the most 100 powerful members of the media industry. Much to the suprise of many, Thom Yorke was listed as #63— one spot ahead of Universal Music Group head Lucian Grange and 17 sports ahead of Guy Hands, head of Radiohead's old EMI label. Yorke, who gets the nod in lieu of his fellow bandmates, earned the spot thanks to his promotion of a new business model with the music industry. The Guardian saw Yorke as paving the way for Nine Inch Nails and the Charlatans (U.K.) to follow suit. He also may have earned the spot with more than a little promotion of Thom Yorke.

While the ingenuity of Yorke is undeniable, it's unclear how much of the decision came from Yorke alone as opposed to the Greenwoods, O'Brien and Selway. Radiohead has made virtually all of its decisions through collaboration, and it's a shame to see Yorke steal all the fire. This iVoice spoof may have been right when it had Thom Yorke say "at some point after we recorded ok computer, i realized they were not necessary and murdered them. we are RADIOHEAD."